Gold had always interested Alain. The shine of it, the odd way it affected people, and the fact that it was the basis of the mercantile currency. They could have used cultivation materials, like some cultures did, but none would stick. It always went back to the gold standard. The ‘Jemm’.
Alain had been around gold from a very young age. His father was a travelling merchant and his mother a runaway from one of the big clans. Of which clan, Alain was never able to find out.
He had a rather uneventful life growing up, before the age of ten he knew no hardships. And only after that he began working with his father, earning a living and trading. His father often said that Alain had ‘the gift of the gab’, he could talk to someone for ten minutes and not only would they leave with what they came to the merchant caravan for, but also with ten things that they had no intention of buying originally. It was often the case that Alain would play a game where he would try and sell a particular object or curio at twice what it was worth. The more he got for the sale, the better he felt he had done.
His father often commented about how the women who bought from them could never resist a boy with bright blue eyes and sandy blond hair. He was their golden goose, and the nickname ‘Goose’ sprung from it.
Pleasant times for Alain continued until he was twelve years old. It had been a hard year, the hardest in people's memory, and Alain’s father had to take a few loans with some shady people to get by. He had borrowed what he thought would be enough from the ‘Black Bear Gang’, but it had covered them for the winter and had not left them enough to buy goods and pay the gang back. He had told the men that he would be able to pay them back once summer rolled round, but as he had nothing to spare he knew he could not pay them and continue earning.
Alain knew none of this, but he soon found out when one night he got up for a drink of water and heard his parents talking.
“We can't pay them back Lou.” Said a woman. Alain knew his mother’s voice anywhere, it was always so soft, bright and musical. He had never heard it this rough before. “Either we run, or we lose the business. You should have known this when we started that stupid loan.”
“I'm so sorry Bree. We can't run with Alain anymore. He needs some stability, now more than ever.” That was Louis, Alain’s father. He was what many would describe as a shrewd man, but with a jolly man’s demeanour. He often got in trouble with the towns they were staying in and Alain’s mother due to his gambling, but he always managed to land on his feet. Alain often heard his mother saying that if Louis would stop gambling for a year they would really make it in life. They would be able to set up a fleet of caravans, and make even more money. Unfortunately he never could. Louis always said that the reason why he was with Bree, Alain's mother, was because he made a bet with the devil, and his prize was the woman of his dreams. Unfortunately the catch was that he would never have money.
“I had a thought. Lou, I know you don't like my family, but if he was sent into the clan then he would have that stability that he needed.”
“Yes but he would become a cultivator.” His father spat. This was the most Alain had heard about his mother's family ever, and he waited with baited breath to hear more.
“Is that such a bad thing?” Replied Bree. “Just because I had an abnormal element does not mean that he will. And even of he just reaches the Cerulean stage, then he will be able to live a long and stable life.”
Alain had heard of Cultivators. They were people who could absorb power from the elements in the air around them, and were the bastion between humanity and the wilds beyond the empire. It was said that there were other human societies in every direction, but only cultivators could visit them. Alain wondered if there were any merchant cultivators. If there were not then he would become one and rule the market. His father always said that if there is not a market for something then be the first to make it. If it was not for the crippling gambling addiction, Alain knew his father would be an incredible merchant.
“Fine. Go wake Alain up. We leave in an hour.”
Knowing he would be caught either way, Alain walked down the stairs in full view of his parents. He looked at them both and said “I heard you talking. Is it really a good idea for me to cultivate? I'm not exactly the strongest person anyone knows, and the legends always say that cultivating to immortality requires strength.”
“Baby, don't worry!” Replied his mother. “I know you can do it. The legends all talk about inner strength, hardiness and willingness to persevere. You're the hardiest person I know, and I am proud of that, because I made you.” Alain’s mother always had a way with words that cut right to the core of Alain’s problems.
“I'll go upstairs and pack then.”
Within the hour Alain and his parents had grabbed everything they could reasonably carry. They pushed Alain to leave his toys behind, as where he was going he likely would not need them. His mother had begun telling him about her family while they packed some clothing for the journey. She told him about how they were a clan of cultivators near the eastern mountains. The family could be quite cut-throat but his mother assured him that he would be in safe hands with his uncle. Uncle Robert was known in the clan as a ‘once in a generation talent’. He was the martial arts teacher of the younger generation, and doted on his little sister. Unfortunately, he hated Louis, Alain’s father. No one knew why, but Robert had always disapproved of Louis, and thought his sister was worth way more than a poor peddler could ever give her.
Finishing packing Alain and his mother looked for his father, and found him holding a small jade box. He handed it to the boy and said “Alain, this is my inheritance to you. It is not much, but my father gave this box to me and told me that when the right person appeared, the box would open. I don’t know if I will have another chance to give it to you, so here.” The box was slim and cool, but Alain tried not to think much about it. They were in a rush to get going, so Alain just put it deep inside his bag and followed his parents out of their house. He wistfully looked back at the house one last time, as he knew that he likely would not have a real home any time soon.
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